This statement from the Durham Miners' Association accepts the restrictions of the Essential Works Order, condemns unofficial strikes as sabotaging the war effort and helping the enemy, and calls for loyalty and discipline.

However, the numbers of strikes and days lost through strikes in coal mining increased in each year of the war. In 1943, there were 843 stoppages and 890,000 days lost in mining. In 1944, this had risen to 1253 stoppages and 2,480,000 days lost.